“I definitely want to make it to playoffs (again), especially our senior year,” Hinkley said. “I would really love to make it. I think we took a lot of people by surprise last year.”

New head coach Alan Veilleux, who was a volunteer assistant last season for Winslow/Gardiner, admits that expectations are certainly different than they were a year ago.

“I think the girls are very excited,” Veilleux said. “We have a solid base coming back, and our expectations are pretty high.”

At this time last year, two weeks before other winter sports (including boys hockey teams) are allowed to begin organized practices, Winslow senior Bailey Robbins remembered that it was more than a bit awkward both in the locker room and on the ice when Winslow/Gardiner first began preseason skating.